WRITER, GARDENER, COUNTRYMAN, EXPLORER - the last's a bit of an exaggeration...

Tuesday, 1 March 2011

Two Updates........

.First Update - Ancestors!.Regular readers of this blog may recall my post about discovering not only my great (and also great-great) grandparents graves but also finding that the church that they had been instrumental in building still there and thriving. Great-great grandpa Wright had also been Deacon at one time..

.To recap, I did not have time to visit the interior of the church and vowed to return. How pleased I was that I did. Members of the congregation were so friendly and welcoming and interested in my connection. It was Harvest Festival, always a joyful time and the service was delightful. How surreal it was to sit there - in a church interior that, miraculously, had remained virtually unaltered since the day it was built in the mid 1800's, worshipping in the place of my ancestors. Their presence felt very strong and I think they would have approved that I, not a very religious man (although I like to think quite a spiritual and good one) and now the 'elder' of the family, had returned. I was so pleased that my first steps inside the building had been to join others in prayer.

.. .Since then, I have returned once again, this time with a friend, to hear an organ recital. It was a joy to see the church filled with so many people. As a cousin, who works with the poor in Afghanistan, said "God is holding you in the palm of His hand, you never know when He will release you". By coincidence - or perhaps not - the opening hymn was 'To God Be The Glory', a hymn sung a few weeks earlier at the last of my aunt's funeral. A deeply religious woman, her greatest wish was that I might have the same depth of faith as she. How heartly I sang although I doubt if my aunt would consider me yet saved!..

On my last visit, I also found the house where my grandmother had been raised. Overlooking the River Thames, our great river that runs, 30 miles downstream, through London it was just a few yards from the paper mill that my ancestors owned before the Second World War. All was sold long before I was born - a pity, it would be amazing to live there now!.

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.Second Update: She-Dog!.

.After delays for one reason and another, the precious She-Dog may be in pup. She has met a handsome lurcher of similar colouring - not the original choice but just as dashing - and spent a few days away on extended honeymoon. Fingers crossed, I may finally become a father. Watch this space!....

Johnson, what a wonderful post, what a wonderful experience...sitting in the very church...seeing the very house.awe.Your friend is correctenjoy your new journeyand i hope you are a "father" for certainsuch a beautiful dog you have

Johnson, I know the feeling of searching and discovering information of ones ancestors: thus far I have been able to trace back to 1700. With each bit of data comes exhilaration. Congratulations on your quest and also on She-dog. ;)

Learning about our ancestors is a fascinating experience. Where they lived, things they did! How lovely to find the church of your gggrandparents ! And their graves! What a beautiful home your Grandmother grew up in and located on the banks of the River Thames! Wishing "She-Dog" all the very best during her confinement!

About Me

JOHN SHORTLAND, Cotswold Hills, England.
John the Writer: It is as natural for me to write as it is for me to eat - and I eat a lot.
John the Gardener: It's in my blood - the family discussed plants as others do football. Now I earn my living by it. Lucky chap!
John the Countryman: Living in a secret valley of winding streams, fields and woods, deer and badgers. Oh, and dogs and horses.
John the Explorer: that description is a tad exaggerated - but I've had my moments. It's all in the blog...